(The Lion) — When America’s premier cultural institution starts calling the founding of the country “a profound unsettling” and describes classical sculpture as a tool of white supremacy, something has gone very wrong.
The Smithsonian museums, funded largely by taxpayers to increase knowledge and preserve our national heritage, have instead become laboratories for progressive ideology – and President Trump is right to demand a review.
The institution came under fire following a Trump executive order earlier this year calling out the diversity, equity and inclusion framing of many museum exhibits and the “negative light” in which they portray the nation’s founding principles.
The official review is expected to wrap up in 2026 – the 250th anniversary of the country’s founding – as the Trump administration has pledged to “renew the Smithsonian’s role as the world’s leading museum institution.”
The administration has sought for the museum to “celebrate American exceptionalism” and showcase “historically accurate, uplifting, and inclusive portrayals of America’s heritage.”
Yet a walk through many of the museum’s exhibits reveals anything but national pride. Rather, visitors encounter an America filtered through a lens of shame and self-loathing.
Of course, dark chapters of American history, including slavery and racism that lingered far beyond it, shouldn’t be glossed over. But by relentlessly focusing on America’s failures, too many exhibits drown out centuries of America’s accomplishments.
A shame-focused narrative
At the National Portrait Gallery and American Art Museum, which share a building, The Lion found a sign on cultural identity that refers to the “myth of American exceptionalism,” as another encourages visitors to envision “new societies that exist beyond the oppressive systems of racism and colonialism.”
One display of George Washington uses materials such as glass to “suggest fragility and brokenness rather than the strength and stability so often invested in heroes and their statues.”
In some wings of the museum, nearly every aspect of history was framed by oppression and America’s failure.
One sign, titled Classical Sculpture and the Myth of the White Ideal, asked, “How is the sculptural ideal of beauty bound up with race and morality?” – and even suggested that classic sculpture is racist.
White marble, thought to “embody ideal beauty and virtue” made viewers align “classical sculpture with racial whiteness,” the sign read. “In this way, American sculpture became a medium for expressing racist hierarchies. The more recent works here highlight the enduring influence of classical sculpture and expose its deep connections to notions of white supremacy …”
Other signs claim public sculpture “has the power to reinforce a racial hierarchy that privileges whiteness” and praised artists for exposing how American institutions such as the legal system “collectively privilege whiteness at the top of a racial hierarchy.”
Equally telling is what some exhibits choose to leave out.
A D.C. Stands United Against Hate sign refers to the “uprising that erupted worldwide following the murder of George Floyd” and the artist’s “solidarity with the racial justice movement,” with no mention of the violent riots that ensued.
A wall display of bricks representing a border wall said the idea of expanding a border wall between the U.S. and Mexico invoked “fear, family separations, and incarceration” but the art display is about “protection, community building, and solidarity.”
Omitted from the display is any acknowledgement of border security concerns, illegal immigration or the reasons millions of Americans support stronger border enforcement.
Even the gift shop is no escape. A number of overtly political books are for sale, including An ABC of Equality children’s book that includes page descriptions such as “L is for LGBTQIA: LGBTQIA is a short description of a range of identities to describe lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, questioning, intersex, and asexual. It’s okay to be whoever you want to be.”
Another gift shop, in the National Museum of African American History and Culture, includes books from controversial author Ibram X. Kendi, who led the 2020 charge on “antiracism” efforts.
The same museum features a video display that maintains race isn’t being talked about enough in America, including in schools and elsewhere. The video features a clip of CBS show host Stephen Colbert and a Black Lives Matter leader, DeRay Mckesson, talking about confronting and dismantling “white privilege.”
The White House cracks down
The White House has publicly called out specific exhibits it views as distorting American history – and The Lion found several examples still on display amid the ongoing review. From reimagining the Statue of Liberty holding up tomatoes instead of a torch, to calling America’s founding a “profound unsettling of the continent,” some displays in the American History Museum may leave visitors questioning if America is worth celebrating.
Trump’s executive order on the Smithsonian, which tasks Vice President J.D. Vance with working to remove “improper ideology” from the museums, promises to restore the Smithsonian to its “rightful place as a symbol of inspiration and American greatness.”
It also expresses concerns about a “revisionist movement” seeking to undermine America’s “remarkable achievements” by negatively framing the founding and significant milestones.
“President Trump is restoring patriotism and pride in American history to our greatest public museums and protecting taxpayers from having their money wasted on divisive ideologies,” Vance’s press secretary, Taylor Van Kirk, told The Lion in a statement.
For families planning trips to the nation’s capital, hoping to show their children why America remains exceptional despite its flaws, the White House’s review can’t come soon enough.
Whether the Trump administration’s intervention will ultimately strike a balance between celebrating America’s past while reckoning with its darkest chapters will determine whether the Smithsonian can reclaim its role as a unifying national hub of knowledge – or remain a battleground in the country’s ongoing culture wars.
